All right, I have decided to stop deciding what days I am going to update, because unless I can see the future, there is no guarantee that I can stick to the scheduled date. I am very sorry to those of you who were expecting this last Friday. I feel like I've been bombarded by my school. One day I'm free, and then the next I find out I have at LEAST one test every day of the next week. I have a National Latin Exam on the coming Thursday as well, plus some more regular tests, so I might not get to writing any new chapters soon. Don't worry, I still have a few from before, I just need to have them beta-ed.
Okay, enough with my schedule. Again, I am truly very VERY sorry to you guys. Please forgive me. I came up with a few better ideas for the end, if it's any consolation, but that might lead towards a really annoying cliffhanger.
Can't be any more emphatic with my thanks to:
Me-agaisnt-the-world, JK rulez, Soulcat56, kitty-lover66, gjcoolio, Sweeteen19, Kybo
Previous chapter:
Her gaze darted to the dark street before them and her body, too, grew numb and froze. A red orb of light was floating several feet off the ground, illuminating the hand conjuring it, a shadowy face, and the demonic, fanged smile of the mutated Plasmius.
"Beauty and the Beast," he said languorously. "Opposites do not attract, I'm afraid. You're better off without him."
And before Sam could breathe a word, the blaze of red tore through the calm air around her, directed towards the fallen hero resting on her shoulder.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Alternative
Chapt 14- Bitter Reunion
Dan Phantom laughed ruthlessly at the helpless victims below. Panicked cries rang out all around him as he conflagrated another green blast. Within seconds, it plummeted into the street, sending cars off the road, toppling over each other and nearly crashing into pedestrians.
Clockwork's fiery red eyes remained emotionless as he watched the catastrophic scene. His lip twitched slightly, but he sighed to himself and turned away. The flat surfaced oracle within the study returned to its green, misty haze.
Two robed figures floated an inch off the floor across the room, both watching the elderly ghost with a single giant, yet narrowed, eye.
"You knew he would escape!" a virile voice said furiously. "You foresaw it!"
"Yes, yes I did," Clockwork replied indifferently.
"Then why did you let it happen? Why not stop him?" the female spoke reasonably, gliding forward slightly.
"To what purpose?" Clockwork asked, examining the battered thermos on the table, trapped within an invisible barrier. Its cap had been placed beside it. He reached his hand through the shield and broke its surface with ease, as if placing a hand in water. It emanated a green glow for a second as he took hold of the Ghost Device and pulled it out before himself.
"To keep him in the thermos for the rest of time?" the aged ghost continued. "What good would that do for us?"
The two Observants looked at each other questioningly. They did not need to ask where Clockwork was going with this; he continued to speak without an answer.
"I put more thought into it. I figured, he is only able to exist outside of time. You are aware, I assume, that the human world is currently an Alternative?"
A set of gasps followed that inquiry and the two eyes widened.
"An Alternative?" the female repeated.
"But what does that have to do with—"
"I'm getting to that," Clockwork cut him off. "Yes," he said to the first, "it is an Alternative. Now, the reason why I permitted his escape isn't very complicated, actually. What is to happen if the girl is to succeed? Not only would we be rid of Plasmius' mutated self and their world set back to the way it belonged, but Dark Phantom would go down with him and everything else that followed after The Fatality's events."
"But that makes no sense," the second Observant said agitatedly, gliding past his companion. "Even if you do plan to reverse the Alternative, Dan would return to his thermos. The mutated Plasmius was the one who set him free. If he never comes to existence, then who—"
"—Would set Plasmius free?" Clcokwork finished, with a humorous chuckle. "I would. Or, at least, I'll keep him free. He lives outside of time to begin with, so the basic rules do not apply. It is for that reason that I am able to keep him and his thermos suspended in this universe, so the events that occur until the girl can change her past will remain for him. If everything is set back to the way it's supposed to be, it will not affect him. He will be stuck here, and if this Alternative disappears, so does he."
Both Observants exchanged glances again, trying to determine whether the other had any idea what the time keeper was speaking of. Clockwork noticed and shook his head.
"You'd best return to the others and stick to Observing. Leave the real work to me," he said, lifting his staff and pointing it at the thermos he was holding.
The two Observants scowled in offense and made their way out of the room without another word. The Master of Time paid no mind to their ire as he produced a luminescent, amethyst light from the end of his staff.
"Suspended in this time and bound to its occurrences; you will not be returning . . ." he said softly.
The circle of light erupted from his staff and snaked around the device. Clockwork released it from his grip and it remained suspended in the air with an invisible shield placed around it, immobilizing it completely.
- - - - - - - - -
Sam leapt out of the way of the attack, managing to parry it by an inch. She lost balance and fell against the cemented ground. Danny landed a short distance beside her, moaning slightly. He struggled to open his eyes, but it seemed to require more energy than he was putting forth.
Sam rolled over and pushed herself up. This battle, the outcome, was depending on her now. She had never felt so desperate to return things to the way they were before, in which she had been merely the backup. Involuntarily, her legs carried her backwards as her profligate enemy advanced.
Plasmius' sneer widened as he lowered his head, casting a shadow over his face. He raced forward, leaving behind a trail of smoke. Sam prepared another dodge, but the ghost instead thrust his fist forward upon coming to an abrupt and unexpected halt. Another red blaze shot through the sky towards the Goth.
She raised a hand before her and brought the other behind her back. Her two blades appeared in her grasp. The girl jumped up, bringing her knees to her chest, and crossed the weapons before her. She spun them rapidly and the red light was deflected. The force, however, thrust her back and she had to perform a backward summersault to regain her footing; even so, she landed rather clumsily.
"A bit more than I expected from a mortal girl," the ghoul commented, bringing his fist back and emitting another powerful ray of energy. Sam's amethyst eyes narrowed as she took her fighting stance once more.
"I'm going to ignore that," she replied bitterly. Plasmius could only laugh as she made an attempt to catch him off his guard: Sam dashed forward, the edges of her blades trailing against the floor behind her. She leapt up and prepared to strike with one, but Plasmius was not intimidated. As was expected, she ended up bringing back her weapon, spun once, and kicked out.
The ghost evaded swiftly and caught her foot. Without giving her the chance to recover, he spun on his heel, holding tight to her ankle, only to release her halfway through. She slid across the street on her back, crying out.
As Plasmius took to the air and prepared another assault, Sam gasped and reached out for the blade nearest her. Her fingers closed around it and she brought it up with its sharp edge directed at her attacker, but he acted on reflex.
Plasmius reached out his free hand and pushed it aside. Sam screamed and covered her face with her arm, but his blast missed by at least three feet. Feeling the heat beside her, she opened her eyes and looked around. Pink smoke was emerging from the illuminated road. It was crumbled from the impact.
Sam's gaze returned to Plasmius, but the ghost was high in the air, struggling with something.
"Danny!" she cried, getting back up on her feet.
Danny's arms were wrapped around Plasmius' thick neck, preventing him from moving his head. The ghost fired a few aimless red beams, but Danny managed to shift around them.
"Sam, get out of the way!" he demanded.
"Bu—"
"Now!"
Another red flare reached the ground and Sam jumped back hastily to avoid its contact. Unwillingly, she shot a fleeting glance at Danny and sprinted out of the way of the battle. Danny released Plasmius and kicked the vile ghoul in the back with all the force he could muster, sending him plummeting into the ground.
"Come on, gruesome! It's me you want!"
Plasmius' form slowly emerged from the faint clouds of smoke issuing from the impact. His dark red eyes turned upon the teenager hovering above him.
"Well, well, well," he said, rising to meet his adversary. Danny shot him a look of utmost detest. He clenched his fists as the painful memory replayed itself in his mind. "I wondered when I'd be seeing you again."
Danny's green eyes flashed entirely and he gritted his teeth, but he knew better than to allow his anger to determine his moves. However, he was unable to fight back the powerful waves of ectoplasm that erupted in his fists. Plamius did not seem intimidated.
"It seemed like only yesterday I was seeing you suffering at my hand. All that pain, all that torment, and for what? To save a girl that stands no chance?" He laughed softly and watched as Danny's aura increased. "It was a foolish mistake, Daniel."
"Your last one!" Danny bellowed, swinging his arm through the air. A whip-like green ectoplasm erupted from his fist and advanced on Plasmius. The mutated ghoul waved his hand before himself and the blast faded. Danny had completely disregarded his mind's advice. Driven by rage, he kicked out, spun around, and swung his other leg over. Two adjacent beams followed the first, but, once more, Plasmius merely brushed them away.
"So this is what becomes of the great hero of Amity Park? Pathetic."
He took his chance to attack while Danny threw a mess of green energy at him. The ghost raised his arm before his face as if to shield himself from a violent wind. Then, with a forceful jerk, he thrust it aside. A red barrier followed the movement and materialized before him. Instead of destroying Danny's oncoming attacks, it rebounded them with greater acceleration.
Danny gasped and flew out of the way, but due to years of little practice and the quantity of his own oncoming attacks, his aerial speed wasn't enough. Three blasts hit him in the chest consecutively and he was sent crashing down into the road beneath them. The slash on his back gave another painful sting when he tried to get up. Plasmius landed beside the boy and placed his foot on his chest, forcing him back down. Another red flash appeared in his clawed hand.
"You put up more of a fight when you were still alive, but then, I wasn't as strong then as I am now." He chuckled and a fanged grin broke out on his shadowed face. "Or maybe this is simply the result of being Clockwork's pet. The old man must've lost his tou—"
He was cut short when a green fist made contact with his jaw, throwing him backwards into the pavement. Danny was already running towards him by the time he could register what happened.
The elder ghost became intangible and the boy phased right through. He spun around and snarled, "COWARD! Come out and fight me!"
"I intend to." Plasmius' cold voice sent a shiver down Danny's spine and he whipped around. The ghost was only a few inches away. His rancid breath was the reason for Danny's quick retreat.
The boy turned his back on his rival and took off, ascending into the cool nighttime sky. Plasmius smiled with amusement at the hypocrisy and followed suit.
- - - - - - - - - -
"Grandma!" Sam called, throwing the door open and running into the visible remains of her house. "Grandma, are you okay!"
No reply echoed off the walls; Sam's heartbeat increased. She climbed up the stairs (jumping over the ones that were obliterated) and ran to her grandmother's room. Most of it was in tact.
"Grandma!" she tried again. As silence followed, she made her way to the basement, all the while muttering words of comfort.
"Bubeleh?"
Sam wheeled around and gasped, "Grandma! Are you all right?"
"Why wouldn't I be?" the aged woman asked, looking around to see what had made that terrible racket several minutes ago. Sam pulled her into a tight embrace and then dialed a number on her cell phone.
"Tucker," she said hastily when the boy answered, "I need your help. I'll explain everything later. Can you watch my grandmother for a while? There's something I have to do."
"Sam—" her grandmother began.
"Not now, I'll tell you later," she said quickly, flipping her phone shut and racing over to the window to get a view of what was going on outside. Unfortunately, it was too dark to see. The lack of spectral energy, however, led to the assumption that the two ghosts had decided to take their battle elsewhere.
"Stay down and wait for Tucker. I'll be right back," she said before her grandmother could stop her.
Sam raced upstairs, trying to see if any of her more useful weapons were undamaged. A horrific sight greeted her when she opened the door.
More than half of her room was completely obliterated. The remaining furniture was either knocked over from the force or partially smoldered. Her bed was gone, along with her personal telephone and laptop. The candles that remained were ignited from the heat. All thoughts of what was going on outside slipped from her mind as she took a few hesitant steps forward.
Her first closet, containing most of the Fentons' weapons she had used many years before, was gone. The pile of clothes that scattered the floor was nowhere in sight. Most of the floor was blasted away.
"No," she whispered, noticing her dresser destroyed as well. She had contained most of her valuable books on it, including her old photo album.
The last time she had looked into that mirror, she had seen the face of a girl weighed down with misery.
The poster of Median beside it, however, was still in tact. The ghost's smirk brought a burning hatred forth. She ran over to the other end of the room, tore it off the wall, and crumpled it up. It landed in the waste basket as she tossed it in rage.
Several seconds of tremulous silence passed before Sam decided to leave the ruins behind. She made her way to the door, blowing out the candles that had been ignited by the destructive blast as she went.
When she reached the last one, however, a gleam of light reached the corner of her eye and she looked down on reflex. There, in the corner of the room, lay a heap of fallen pictures. A teal book was resting on top of a few, bearing the word 'DIARY' in pink letters.
Sam got down on her knees beside it and reached out for a tearstained photograph. Two fourteen year old teenagers were dancing under the starry skies, bathed in the splendor of the moon's light.
She examined the picture carefully. Her heart did not constrict painfully. No tears spilled from her eyes. Her fingers trembled slightly as she lowered it, for the first time that night registering the fact that Danny Phantom had returned.
Phantom . . . ., her mind whispered with heavy emphasis, but her negativity would not take control now.
Quickly, Sam began gathering her pictures, piling them up as a smile planted itself on her features. She couldn't help but laugh as the immense weight of grief lifted itself from her shoulders. He was back! He came back! She saw him! She hugged him!
She pulled the pictures close to herself in a tight embrace. Her heart had grown wings. Any second, the joy she was feeling was going to lift it from her body. Any second, she was going to fly . . . with her ghost boy.
Sam lifted the book and flattened out the crumpled pages before placing the stack of pictures between them. She got to her feet and made her way to one of the tables bearing several candles.
However, as she extended her arms to place the book on its surface, a tiny glint of gold fell from within it. Quizzically, Sam reached down for it.
A golden ring with a single teal colored stone rested in her palm. She gasped and read the printed letters more closely. They read 'weS'. A painful memory reentered Sam's mind, bringing her light mood back down to earth. In her hand lay the ring Danny had once planned to give to Valerie.
Her eyes remained fixed on the three letters, wondering what they could've possibly meant. If it was a ring for Valerie, what on earth did 'w.e.s." stand for? She flipped the ring over in an attempt to decipher it and read now, 'Sam'.
It only took Sam three seconds to realize it was her name printed on the little accessory. Her jaw fell agape as lavender eyes went wide.
- - - - - - - - - -
Din broke out amongst the running citizens as a reporter's voice spoke to the crowd from a large screen centered just above them. The confused and terrorized shouts brought laughter to Dan Phantom as he began striking down moving vehicles. Ruins and debris choked the streets.
A tall and slender woman stepped out of her car and cast a dark look at the ruthless ghost. Her red hair was tied neatly behind her and she flattened down the skirt of her suit. Another emerged from the passenger side. She exchanged a glance with her daughter and pulled a teal hood over her head.
"Get your father, dear. I'll hold him off!" she called above the noise. The formal looking lady beside her nodded and took off.
A green flash illuminated the scene for a split second and the girl screamed, stopping in her tracks as a large crater appeared in the ground before her. She looked up and her aqua colored eyes met with the mirthless red ones of Phantom.
"And just where do you think you're going, Jasmine?" he asked with a vile smirk. Jazz narrowed her eyes and clenched her fists, but she was in no position to fight now. Taking several quick steps back, she began to head the other way, pushing her way into the heavy throng. Phantom chuckled coldly and said, "No, you don't get to leave here in one piece."
Another blaze of ectoplasmic energy erupted from his palm and, just as quickly, a matching beam hit him in the chest from Maddie's ecto-gun. While it did manage to steal away his attention, Jazz wasn't quick enough to outrun his assault.
The people around her dashed out of the way only a second before it could reach them. She let out a frightened cry, but an arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her out of the way just before it hit, crumbling the ground where she had stood seconds before.
Jazz gasped and looked up at her savior. All air seemed to have left her as she froze, perfectly still; her transfixed blue-green eyes widened to their fullest extent.
"Are you all right?" Danny asked, apparently unaware of whom he was holding. She could only utter a faint noise, much to his puzzlement.
Several of the people below had managed to glance at the scene above. Before long, almost every set of eyes were on the ghost boy.
Danny, quickly parrying a red flare from Plasmius, changed his course and headed for one of the buildings' roofs. He set his nineteen year-old sister down with one last fleeting look before taking off again, too wrapped up in his own world in which he was now the hero again to notice that her eyes were still fixed, inactively, at his back.
"Come on, Daniel!" Plasmius sneered. "Stop running and fight me!"
Growing irritable at Plamius' challenges, Danny flipped around and thrust his arm forward. Five crystal-like spears of ice sped through the air and the ghost had to pause to dodge them. This gave Danny enough to time to find a safe place to fight.
Ignoring the distant cries (some of which were now including the words "Danny Phantom"), the reporter's booming voice overhead on the plasma screen T.V., and the snide comments from Plasmius, Danny spotted an abandoned ally just several yards below.
He pulled into a dive, but a surprise attack met him just as he positioned himself. An unexpected red beam of energy connected with his stomach and threw him further into the air.
He tore through the fierce wind and landed on his back on the sleek floor of one of the adjacent buildings' roofs. The healing slash on his back gave another painful throb as he slid across the granite, finally coming to a stop in the center.
Plasmius, no longer smirking, landed just before the roof's guardrail. He had an eyebrow quirked, but immediately disregarded the occurrence and prepared an ectoblast in his palm. He raised his hand before Danny to strike.
"That was a cheap shot," Danny snapped furiously, slowly getting to his feet and holding tight to his wounded stomach.
"Actually, that was me," a different voice said coldly.
Danny's eyes widened promptly. With the same rapidity, he made to spin around and steal a glance at the offender, but found himself unable to do so as a heated object pressed against the back of his head.
My guess here is that there are two possibilities of who that could be. I would go with my first instinct, though . . . I'm not going to reveal too much about the later chapters.
Okay, I have NO clue when my next update will be, for my school schedule is currently tearing me apart. But, I will give you a little hint of what the next chapter will be about.
Chapter 15 – A past shrouded by hate, the return of the ghost boy, and one vengeful opportunity has left them falling, right into the arms of a boy Sam thought she knew.